Marra Forni at the Pizza Expo 2023
Pizza Expo is the largest annual trade show for the pizza industry, featuring hundreds of...
There’s no better time to receive heartfelt compliments than American Heart Month! Since our satisfied clients are the lifeline of our business, we love hearing their success stories. In a recent discussion with one of La Posta Pizzeria’s owners Charlie Priola, he claimed that our oven was the “heart of his restaurant!” Priola, who has been in the restaurant industry for over 35 years, and operates La Posta with Arturo Ottaviano, says that his customers love to sit at the bar to witness his Marra Forni Wood and Gas Fired Rotator in action.
Priola affectionately calls his Marra Forni the “Ferrari of ovens,” and appreciated the fact that the new rotating deck feature omits the need to have a second person manning the ovens during normal traffic times. He also enjoys the wood box and the opportunity to utilize both the latest technology with traditional fuel since his oven is wood with gas assist. He enjoys the fact that the Marra Forni ovens require very little maintenance, and he only needs to clean them once a week. Priola has become such an expert on ovens that he even trains new consumers and colleagues on how to use them.
La Posta, located in the former landmark Severna Park post office, recently added 70 additional seats to its’ original 74-seat space and is proud to offer a private party space as well. In homage to its historic roots, La Posta, which means “post office” in Italian, incorporates a postal theme in everything from its stamp logo to its envelope placemats. Priola’s customers are as enthusiastic about his pizzas as he is about his oven. One of La Posta’s longtime customers travels to Florida each winter. Since she can’t “live without” their Neapolitan-style pizza, she has Priola prepare 10 large pies to freeze so that she can enjoy them there as well.
While he turns out more than 150-200 pizzas per night during the weekends, Priola says the oven is also great for fish, steak, and chicken as well. This is great news since, in addition to making pizza, La Posta is also famous for its extensive menu of Italian specialties including pasta, veal, seafood, and more. But don’t let the elegant food fool you, says Priola, who personally greets each of his tables nightly, our philosophy is all about “fun dining.”
Selling between 40,000-60,000 pizzas a year, Priola is also happy about including his young sons, Giuseppe and Giovanni in the fun. With passionate pizzaiolo, chefs, and bakers like the Priola’s, La Posta is taking #NationalBakeforFamilyFunMonth to a whole new level. It is their contagious passion for the artisan craft of baking, unparalleled hospitality, and authentic Italian cuisine that encourage patrons to flock from Bethesda, Baltimore, Annapolis, and beyond to get their weekly fix. We are proud to consider the Priola family and the La Posta team part of our Marra Family.
